Upon his election as the 45th president of the United States, Donald Trump has promised to unify our country and work to rebuild our nation and renew the American Dream. He emphasized his background recognizing the untapped potential in projects and people, and expressed the desire to do the same for the nation at large. As the construction industry braces for a critical shortage of skilled craft employees during the next decade, ABC values President-elect Trump’s commitment to developing people to leverage their talent for the benefit of all—a core principle of ABC’s mission.

Heeding President-elect Trump’s call to embark on a project of national growth and renewal, ABC will work with the administration to advance policies that create the conditions for all Americans to build our communities, our infrastructure, and to build America. This is the vision of the merit shop philosophy – an America where open competition and free enterprise thrive, which ultimately drives opportunity for all to achieve. We look forward to the potential created by President-elect Trump’s infrastructure plan, which could create jobs in the construction industry for all Americans.

President-elect Trump cites regulatory reform as the cornerstone of his administration. He recognizes the burdens the current regulatory environment places on members’ ability to grow their businesses, and ABC is well positioned to assist the administration in ensuring regulations and legislation are consistent with the merit shop philosophy.

Next year also brings the start of the 115th Congress, with Republican majorities in both the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate. Supported by the efforts of ABC PAC, 200 pro-merit shop members of the U.S. House and 19 Senators were elected or re-elected, including 24 non-incumbents who were elected to their first term. With a new Congress come new opportunities to advance the merit shop philosophy for the betterment of the communities in which ABC and its members work.

ABC looks forward to working with the Trump administration and leaders in Congress to further the political advocacy goals of the organization and ensure there is a level playing field for all Americans to reshape our economy and build our country.